User blog comment:Danthemanb/Riddles/@comment-1209332-20100414213955

Okay, so the formula for the answer is M+C/ (or divided by) L-G. So, M= the number of Men, C is the sum of gray's RGB values, L is Lord Nelson (1 if he is not a badger, 2 if he is), and G is the number of guards. We substitute and get:

(3+192+192+192)/(1-2)

Which simplifies too

579/-1

Which equals -579.

Now the answer needs to be in hours, so we divide by sixty:

-579/60=-9.65

That means the men asked for cards 9.65 hours before the problem (because it's negative).